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Thirty-nine-year-old Viswashkumar Ramesh spoke publicly for the first time with 60 Minutes, detailing everything from his ongoing physical and emotional struggles to his frustration with the airline’s response. Ramesh was in seat 11A when the Boeing 787 took off from Ahmedabad, India, bound for London. Just 32 seconds later, the aircraft crashed into a crowded neighbourhood and exploded into flames. “It’s painful. I’m finding myself very difficult, like mentally, physically, and also my family is suffering mentally completely,” Ramesh told Channel 9. Ramesh’s younger brother, Ajay, was also on board and died instantly. “My mother, always sitting in front of my brother’s picture, is just crying and thinking about my brother,” Ramesh said. Despite severe injuries, Ramesh managed to open the emergency exit and escape the burning wreckage. But the scars of the horrific event still linger today. He says his physical injuries have not recovered, and he’s constantly thinking of his baby brother, who could not be saved. “Physically, still in pain,” he said. “My body, like (my) knee, back, shoulder, and left-hand side, is burning in my hand.” Before the disaster, Ramesh worked with his brother in the family’s fishing business in Diu on India’s west coast. He was returning to his home in Leicester, where he lives with his wife and young son. Since returning to the UK, Ramesh has been unable to work and is seeking treatment for physical and psychological injuries. He’s also been recorded saying he fears flying after the Air India disaster. “I’m staying alone in my room,” he said. “I’m not spending time with my family, like my wife and son.” Frustration with Air India Ramesh’s advisers, Sanjiv Patel and Radd Seiger, say the family feels abandoned by Air India. “The senior executives of Air India made a public announcement right at the beginning [saying] we will look after those families who are victims,” Patel said. “But in practice, the machinery has been unknown faces, emails, papers being put in front of people to sign, no understanding of what that means.” Ramesh and his representatives have requested a meeting with Air India Chief Executive Campbell Wilson, but have so far only been offered a discussion with executives from the Tata Group, which owns the airline. “Sanjiv and I have done our best to try and resolve this privately,” Seiger said. “This isn’t going to happen or via email or via lawyers. The chief executive has to come and meet with us so that he can help us, help him.” An interim report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found that the plane’s fuel supply switches were briefly cut off shortly after takeoff before being turned back on. The cause of the crash has not been formally determined. Air India has made an interim payment of £21,500 (about AU$43,000) to Ramesh — the same amount given to each family who lost a loved one on flight 171. Seiger said the payment is inadequate given Ramesh’s urgent medical needs. “They don’t want to war with Air India, they just want help. And in this case, there’s an immediate, urgent need for intensive psychiatric treatment, as you can probably tell. They need to arrange that, and they need to pay for that,” he said. In a statement to Nine, Air India said it is “keenly aware this continues to be an incredibly difficult time for all affected and continue to offer the support, compassion, and care we can in the circumstances.” Ramesh is now represented by lawyers alongside other affected families and continues to push for accountability from the airline.
